IPL 2018: 5 bowlers who have disappointed this season

It is an accepted fact that modern cricket is a batsman’s game. The bowlers find life really hard across all three formats these days, but their suffering is usually the most in the T20 format.

We are witnessing much of the same during the current season of the Indian Premier League.

With multiple 200+ scores posted and even chased down already this season, it is evident that bowlers have been having a torrid time in the past few weeks.

However, over the years, several bowlers have established themselves to be a force to be reckoned with in the IPL and have often stood tall amongst the batting carnage.

That being said, in this edition of the league, some of the most respected T20 bowlers in recent times have had an ordinary season by their high standards. This piece looks at some of those ‘Star’ bowlers who have failed to deliver this season in the world’s biggest T20 league.

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#5 Ravichandran Ashwin

The new Kings XI skipper hasn’t had a really bad IPL this year with the ball in hand, but he finds a place on the list simply because of the extremely high standards he sets for himself.

This season, the added pressure of leading his side seems to have taken a bit of toll on the off-spinner and he looks a little unsure about his bowling role in the side.

Being the premier spinner in the Punjab squad, Ashwin is expected to pick up wickets which is something he has not been able to do this season. He has only taken five scalps in seven IPL games with a strike rate of over 30.

While the rise of young Afghan sensation Mujeeb Ur Rehman has significantly helped take the pressure off Ashwin as the lead spinner, if Kings XI has to go deep into the tournament their talismanic off-spinner has to come into his own.

#4 Mustafizur Rehman

Mustafizur Rehman has an indifferent IPL so far

The ‘Fizz’ burst onto the IPL scene with a fantastic debut season for the Sunrisers Hyderabad and has been one of the most talked about bowlers of the league ever since.

This year, Mumbai Indians picked up the left-arm pacer with the hope to see him weave the same magic with the ball that he did for the Sunrisers.

Unfortunately for Rohit Sharma and Mumbai, Rahman hasn’t been able to re-discover the form that made him a household name in India.

His death bowling, which was his key strength, has let him down a few times this season already with him conceding almost 8.5 runs per over in the games he has played so far. His reputation as a strike bowler has also taken a hit this year with him dismissing only seven batsmen in six games.

His ordinary form this year has seen him lose his spot in the team twice and many pundits believe that his severe dip in performance has been one of the key factors behind Mumbai’s poor showing the season.

#3 Imran Tahir

The leg-spinner picked up 18 wickets in the last edition of IPL

The sight of the Proteas leg-spinner going off on one of his trademark runs after picking a wicket had become a common sight in the past few seasons of the IPL. But, this season, fans have not got too many chances to witness it.

Tahir, who is representing MSD-led Chennai Super Kings, has struggled to rediscover his form so far this year. CSK expected him to be their lead spinner but he has completely failed to deliver so far. In the six games he has played this season, Tahir has picked just 6 wickets at an economy rate of above 9 runs an over.

This is in sharp contrast to his showing for Rising Pune Supergiants last season where he picked up 18 wickets at an impressive strike rate of 15 while conceding under 8 runs an over. His poor run this campaign has seen him lose his spot in the team to Karn Sharma.

#2 Mitchell Johnson

Johnson plays for KKR this year

The Aussie speedster was acquired by the Kolkata Knight Riders as a back up to Mitchell Starc, based on his impressive showing last season in the limited games he played for the Mumbai Indians. With Starc ruled out of the tournament even before it began, Johnson was entrusted with the job of leading the KKR pace attack.

But much to the dismay of the Kolkata crowd, he has been one of the biggest disappointments for the Knights so far. He has been extremely erratic, almost bowling one boundary ball every over.

In five appearances for the Knight Riders this season, the Queenslander has been hit to all parts of the ground by opposition batsmen, conceding over 10.5 runs an over on an average while taking only two wickets in the process.

This is the polar opposite of his form from last season, when he was often the X-factor for the Mumbai franchise, picking crucial wickets for his team while going at just 7 runs per over, in the five games he played.

#1 Jaydev Unadkat

Unadkat was sold at the 2018 auction for 11.5 Crores to the Rajasthan Royals

Jaydev Unadkat was the darling of this year’s IPL auction, becoming the most expensive Indian player to be sold when Rajasthan paid a whopping 11.5 crores for the left-arm seamer.

There was always an apprehension about the amount of pressure on him to justify his price tag, and so far, the pressure seems to be getting the better of him.

The left-armer hasn’t found his bearings at all this season, picking up just 7 wickets in 8 games at an economy rate almost touching 11 runs an over. Unadkat is a shadow of the bowler we saw last year, where he impressed many, on the way to becoming the second highest wicket-taker of the tournament with 24 wickets.